Perceived agency unresponsiveness is often just responsiveness to rival pressures

Evidence

Often when people complain about unresponsive agencies they mean that the agency does not respond to them. But an agency may ignore group A because of pressure from group B, which is pulling in the opposite direction. In such a case, we can easily, but mistakenly, imagine that the agency is performing poorly because of technical, structural, bureaucratic reasons. The agency in fact is responsive; what is wrong (from our standpoint) is its pattern of response. Technical reform will not cure the problem. What is needed is political reform, giving group A more power, or exerting pressure on our own (if that is what we want). — Lawrence M. Friedman and Grant M. Hayden, American Law, 615

Categorization

• XREF: Directly parallels the ‘industry capture’ discussion already surfaced from ch42 — both show agencies as contested fields of competing interests rather than good/bad. — connects to: Being unreachable during negotiation strengthens one’s bargaining position — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 71; Policy persistence from popularity is not entrenchment; only nonresponsiveness to preference shifts is — Daryl Levinson and Benjamin I. Sachs, Political Entrenchment and Public Law, 51

Broader Connections

• Policy persistence from popularity is not entrenchment; only nonresponsiveness to preference shifts is #corroborates (0.88) — Daryl Levinson and Benjamin I. Sachs, Political Entrenchment and Public Law, 51
• Being unreachable during negotiation strengthens one’s bargaining position #expands (0.78) — Thomas C. Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict, 71